


Inhumane

by yeysal



Category: Gravity Falls
Genre: Aged-Up Character(s), Monster!Bill, Other, POV Alternating
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2016-07-29
Updated: 2016-08-21
Packaged: 2018-07-27 10:27:17
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Graphic Depictions Of Violence
Chapters: 8
Words: 17,424
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/7614532
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/yeysal/pseuds/yeysal
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>Bill Cipher, out of boredom and desire for something new, tries to see how long he can be entertained by a potential meal.</p>
            </blockquote>





	1. Hunger

**Author's Note:**

> Tra-la-la.

There’s something about her.

A magnet personality. An intriguing taste like artificial sweetness that slowly evolved into dry mouth bitterness. A smile that was also laughter even though no sound emitted from her lips. Long, thick locks of hair that he loved watching as it gently fell between his fingers when he held it.

However, what he loved the most about her were her eyes. Most humans, their eyes only contained their broken masks of strength and beneath those cracks, he could see their shattered resolve. He had witnessed it so many times in his kills that it was hardly entertaining anymore.

Her eyes, however, were beacons of gold shining in a sea of melancholy grey. Bright, they were, that was always what greeted him first. Under that glow, a shimmering veil of untouched innocence and her child-like view of the world. It matched her outgoing personality and unwavering sense of naiveté.

But there was something else. A dark mystery behind those soul-bearing orbs that he just _couldn’t_ pin down.

He could see it, could _sense_ it. Underneath that brilliant, unbroken mask behind her eyes was a calculating and intelligent persona. She was so outspoken about simple subjects that mattered none to him or anyone else for that matter and it seemed to be another part of her unwavering façade.

Hell, help him but Bill wanted to _chase_ it.

Yet, he also needed to eat. It had been two months since his last feed…and he was getting desperate. He never imagined prepping his potential human meal would leave him with such interest but here he was, entertaining his dinner.

“So!” she leaned across his lap as they sat in the park, “That’s why I think everyone in the world should have a pet pig.”

“Hm,” he threaded his fingers through her hair again, “It’s not as feasible as you think.”

He chuckled when she frowned and turned her head up at him, “Why not?”

He leaned back, resting his other arm on the back of the bench and picked up a string of her hair between his index finger and thumb, “Some humans eat pigs. Don’t you think that would be a little awkward?”

“No one should eat pigs,” she crossed her arms over her chest and huffed.

“Would you live with something you eat?”

“Would _you_?”

Bill blinked, his expression falling in suspicion. These were the moments he suspected she knew much more than she let on. His eyes lowered and a small smile crept on his face, “That would be _inhumane_ , my dear.”

She sighed and sat up, stretching her arms out. Her sweater was jostled and it dropped, exposing one of her shoulders. Bill stared at the freckles that were peppered along her pale skin. His mouth watered when he could see the faint color of her veins.

“What is it?”

His gaze shifted to her face. Her smile was a little suggestive and there was a devious twinkle in her eyes. He responded with a simple shake of his head and moved some hair from her other shoulder, “You’re not too warm in that?”

She turned her hips around on the bench and folded her elbow over the back of the bench, “Sweaters are my trademark.”

“I disagree.”

“Why?”

“Because your eyes are the most fascinating about you.” He smirked when she blushed and leaned her face into the crook of her other arm. He became concerned when her gaze became distant, like she was lost inside her head, “Did I upset you?”

She shook her head, “No one’s ever said that to me before.”

Bill reached his hand towards her and traced his thumb over her cheek, “How do you feel?”

She lifted and dropped her shoulders in a small shrug and looked up at him, “You’re sweet.” She said it so sadly that Bill found it comical.

He poked her nose, “I think we should agree to disagree.”

She sat up straight again and drummed her fingers along the back of the bench, edging them near Bill’s shoulders, “We’ve been seeing each other for a while now, huh?”

_Two months and exactly eighteen and a half days_ , Bill thought as he tried not to listen to his stomach rumble with hunger, “Time flies, doesn’t it?”

“Yeah,” she smiled and leaned her head over the back of the bench. She looked out at the horizon, the sun was starting to set, “It’s getting late. Walk me home?”

“Of course.” She never asked to have him walk her home before. This was his chance. He was drawing the line tonight. If he waited too much longer he would die. He couldn’t go on like this. In his hungry haze, he realized how stupid he was for entertaining this longer than necessary.

The walk back to her apartment complex was brutal on his energy and he couldn’t shake the pinging feeling that they were being followed.

It didn’t matter. A potential two for one was never something he shied away from and judging how hungry he was, he was actually hoping for it. He would need to skip town immediately after dumping the bodies.

When they reached the apartment complex that Bill assumed was hers, she stopped just a few feet shy of the gate entrance and leaned against the brick wall. The sun was now set but its remaining light cast a beautiful pink color in the clear sky. The stars were becoming visible in what little violet was present. She let out a small breath and smiled at him, “So I’ll see you tomorrow?”

Bill looked into her eyes and this time, he saw apprehension. That was new. She was standing two feet away from the overhead lights and Bill couldn’t help but feel how perfect this was for a final goodbye. He moved closer, leaving just two inches of space between them and ran his hand over her shoulder, caressing her _beautiful_ neck gently, “Of course.”

She straightened her posture, leaning just slightly off the wall. She arched her hips just enough to where they pressed against Bill’s. Then she wrapped her arms around his waist and pulled him into a small hug.

Bill took a deep breath and inhaled her scent. She always smelled like apples and strawberries. He would miss that for a few days at least. He pressed his cheek against the side of her head and trailed his hand from her neck to her hair, lightly dragging his nails over her scalp.

This was it. He allowed himself to break down his own mask. His fingertips of the hand behind her head morphed into his black-as-night claws. Their sensation of touch was hardly recognizable from human fingernails. He could feel his stomach lurch and his flesh crawl beneath his stupid, ridiculous shirt. He wrapped his other arm around her waist, running his hand along her back as that hand also morphed to match his other.

He would snap her neck. Painless…maybe, but for her it was worth it. He _enjoyed_ her. He would let her go with as little pain as possible.

Suddenly her grip tightened considerably and she turned her head quickly to kiss him on the mouth.

Bill was _surprised_ to say the least. She moved her mouth along his expertly, grabbing behind his neck to deepen the kiss. Before Bill realized it, he had her pressed against the wall and he was returning the kiss with as much energy as she was giving. In a way, Bill realized that he was actually struggling against her.

He never realized she was so _strong_. She was certainly not the delicate flower she appeared to be.

It was thrilling. She ran her tongue along his lower lip and then bit him harshly. _Fuck_ , she actually drew blood. Bill leaned back in shock and looked her in the eyes again. Their expression matched his hungry one.

He cursed as he leaned his head back in to continue kissing her. He groaned quietly when she wrapped one leg around his waist.

She was making devouring her fucking _impossible_. He had never gone so far with a human before and at this rate, he was going to starve.

He almost _didn’t_ mind.

He trailed his hand, still a sharpened black claw, to the front of her neck and applied a bit of pressure. She gasped and her eyes fluttered open as she broke the kiss.

It was trace, but Bill smiled at the fear in her eyes. He knew his teeth were now sharpened into fangs considering her gaze was now focused on his mouth with concern. He moved closer, pressing his abdomen against her body. She tensed immediately and he chuckled in her ear.

He had her immobilized with fear. Now was his chance. He tightened his grip around her neck and-

_Click._

He stopped. He followed the source of the familiar sound of the gun before he felt it being pressed against the back of his skull.

“S-Step away from her now.”

Bill turned his head and saw a young man, similar-looking to the woman pinned to the wall in front of him and he swore under his breath when he recognized the ball cap on the young man’s head.

_The fucking Pines twins._

He should have fucking known. He heard another clicking sound and a barrel being shoved into his chest. He looked down and saw the gun she was holding, her eyes sending an angry message.

He smirked mirthlessly and released her. She didn’t move away but she angled her back away from the wall, keeping the gun pointed on him.

The other sibling moved behind Bill, “Mabel, are you alright?”

“Of course, I am. This one took a while to reel in.”

This one? Bill’s eyebrows raised. He knew these two were some of the best monster hunters on the west coast but he felt a little…inferior with that statement.

The other sibling scoffed, “Shapeshifters don’t normally take two months between meals to feed, I’m surprised he’s not emaciated,” he looked at Mabel, “Are you sure he hasn’t eaten since you met him?”

Bill smirked, _‘Shapeshifter, huh?’_

“I’m pretty sure, Dipper,” Mabel shot a warning glance at Bill when he tried to duck away, “You stay right there, you monster.”

Bill tilted his head, “That’s amusing,” he trailed one of his clawed fingers along his still bleeding lip, “You were pretty _convincing_ in your passions, my dear.”

“I’m not your ‘dear,’” she glared, “What’s the plan now, Dip?”

“Oh, and you don’t have a plan?” Bill smiled and he let his ruse fall away, his skin became black as night and his neck elongated as his eyes morphed into one large one in the middle of his forehead, “You two are given way too much credit in your silly circles.”

Mabel blinked and backed away as Bill disappeared into the darkness, “Uh, Dipper, I thought you said he was a shapeshifter?”

Dipper made a fumbling noise as he walked closer to Mabel, “H-He is! That’s what the journals said!” The two siblings stood back to back as they hunted for Bill’s location.

Bill, however, was now perched in a nearby tree. He extended his form’s shadow around the twins teasingly. He could kill them. He could maim them so nicely from here. As far as they knew, he was still right in front of them.

But he didn’t have the energy to do what he really wanted. That would require a meal first.

Down below, the other sibling seemed to have noticed the jig and he pulled Mabel towards the light of the apartment complex.

Bill smiled as he stared down at the twins who were groaning irritably at having lost their prey. He could sympathize. After all, he just lost his own meal. However, now that he knew what he knew, he would toy with this one for a while longer.

Then, Mabel stared up into the tree. Bill could see her eyes from where he was perched. They were filled mostly with disgust and horror, with a nice mix of disappointment and heartbreak.

That was certainly interesting.

Bill growled painfully when his stomach lurched. He felt a tongue jut out of his abdomen and his back arched when his midsection tore open. He could feel the faint tickle of fangs and the rumbling, hungry sound was now a scratchy whine.

He needed to eat more than he wanted to mess with the Pines twins. When he looked back at the sidewalk, those two were long gone.

Bill glared. After dinner, they were next on his list.


	2. Run

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Mabel is greeted by a familiar -and unwelcome- old friend.

_A few weeks later_

 

 

Mabel was running. Her chest burned and her feet hit the pavement so hard she could feel the bones in her feet cracking. Each breath she took was halting in her throat and she coughed. Her skin was on fire beneath her sweater.

The creature, a wendigo, giving chase behind her showed no signs of fatigue. In fact, it seemed to be toying with her. It ran at a medium pace, keeping no less than fifteen feet behind her. At one point, it swiped one of its long legs towards her and it sent her tumbling off of the road and into the forest.

Mabel cried out in frustration as she scrambled to her feet and continued running deeper into the forest in an effort to lose the creature. She grabbed her walkie-talkie and pressed her face against the speaker, “Dipper, where are you?!”

Dipper’s voice came over in a cracked muffle, “Where are you?! Wh- -appened yo- sig-al?!”

“He destroyed my supplies! I need help!”

“I’ll find –ou!”  Dipper’s voice cut out and the radio went silent.

Mabel gripped the walkie-talkie tightly, fearful of dropping it. It was the only thing she had left next to her gun and pocket knife and unfortunately, she only had one bullet left.

The wendigo started picking up speed. Its roar indicated that it had lost its patience in this little cat-and-mouse game. Mabel knew she was done for. So she did the next best thing.

She stopped and ducked to the ground.

The creature, moving way too fast, went past her by a few feet before stopping. It left a trail of dust in the dirt of the forest floor. As it righted itself, Mabel turned on her heels and shot forward in the other direction.

A painful twinge in the muscle of her upper thigh sent her straight back to the ground. She cried out in pain and held her leg, willing the pain to stop. She knew she pulled a muscle.

It was too late. The wendigo was already hovering above her.

Mabel was now all too aware of how alone she was in the forest. The dark green pines surrounding her felt like a soundproof trap. The twigs and dirt beneath her pierced what little bit of her skin that was exposed. The wendigo’s drool fell in hot globs beside her.

When she moved her hand to reach for her gun the creature roared and slammed its three-fingered claw near her head. Mabel shrieked and closed her eyes, turning her head away. She could feel its hot breath on her cheek and squirmed when she felt its scratchy tongue trace along her face.

She was whimpering now. There was no sign that Dipper was nearby and now her chances were very likely that she would die here. When the creature set its claw on her abdomen and let out a shrieking roar, she closed her eyes and prepared herself.

Then, a rush of air as the creature’s weight was lifted off of her stirred up the leaves and branches at her side. The wendigo let out a surprised cry before it was abruptly silenced followed by an echoing snapping sound. Mabel opened her eyes and turned her head to the trees where she could hear the noise of something crunching and slurping.

She grimaced and covered her ears as the noise increased. It sounded horrendous. _‘Dipper where are you…?’_

Whatever was currently feasting on the wendigo would surely get her next. She curled in on herself and gripped her aching leg. The noises had stopped and all that was left was the tranquil sounds of the birds and the wind rustling through the leaves.

She knew better than to fall for that kind of trap. When a few minutes passed, her ears perked at the rhythmic, crunching sound of someone walking towards her.

“You seem to have gotten yourself in a bit of a bind.”

Mabel’s eyes widened and she turned her head towards that familiar voice. Her heart skipped in her chest when she saw Bill. He had reformed his human appearance that he used to bait her all those weeks ago. Only now, there were a few aspects that he allowed to fall to the wayside. His hands were still black claws, his skin was dark as the night sky and it covered him all the way up to his chin. He was still dressed in a white blouse and slacks only it looked a lot more casual now that he seemed to care less for appearance’s sake.

It seemed the only _human_ thing about his appearance was his face and his dark hair. Even his eyes were inhuman as they glowed yellow.

Bill smirked and leaned against a tree, “Long time no see.”

Mabel glared, “What are you doing here?”

“Protecting my investment.”

Mabel groaned and sat up, withdrawing her gun from her sling, “Stay back.”

“Mm,” Bill idly ran his claw over the trunk of the tree, leaving deep scratches in the bark, “I’ve been keeping my eye on you.”

Mabel maneuvered to rest up against another tree, keeping her gun pointed at Bill, “You’ll never get a better opportunity to kill me,” she sighed tiredly but maintained her targeted gaze, “It doesn’t mean I won’t go down easy.”

Bill cackled, “Oh, Shooting Star, I’m not going to hurt you, not yet anyway,” he flexed his palm, “To be honest, I’m rather impressed with you.”

Mabel shook her head, “Save your lies for some other victim,” she pressed up against the bark of the tree.

There was a moment of silence as Bill regarded her curiously. He leaned off the tree but made no moves toward her, “You’re wounded.”

“I’m fine.”

Bill hummed and turned his gaze up towards the trees, “You know there are about two hundred and fifty-three-no, excuse me,” he looked quickly to the left, “Fifty- _four_ predators waiting to pounce you.”

Mabel glanced around, not seeing anything out of the ordinary, “That’s a lie.”

“Is it?” Bill smiled, his teeth appearing as normal human ones, “Shall we test my theory then?”

Mabel’s eyes narrowed, “What theory?”

Bill vanished.

Mabel was left in the silence of the woods. Her arm ached and she dropped her gun in her lap, taking a few deep breaths as she looked around for a sign of Bill. After a few minutes of nothing, she relaxed against the tree and waited for Dipper to show up. She was wondering why she wasn’t getting any feed from her walkie-talkie.

She brought said radio to her face and her expression fell when she saw how damaged it had become from her fall. It wouldn’t even switch on. How was Dipper going to find her now? She closed her eyes and leaned her head against the bark of the tree, desperately trying not to cry.

There was a crunching sound of leaves nearby that caught her attention and she groaned irritably, “Bill, leave me al-ah!”

A large, black wolf was inching towards her. Its mouth was open in a snarl, the fur on its snout furled up in aggression. It crept slowly, stopping occasionally as the wind changed direction.

Once it was a few feet away, it lowered itself to the bed of the forest floor, ready to leap forward.

Mabel pointed her gun but before she could take a shot, the lupine creature was swept up in the air and tossed in the other direction. It hit the ground with a painful yelp and once it stood up, it ran away quickly.

Mabel’s eyes widened and she drew her legs up to her chest as Bill reappeared, this time standing where the wolf had been.

Bill chuckled, “You see what I mean?”

It took Mabel a few seconds to adjust from another near death experience, “What are you doing?”

“I already told you, I’m protecting my investment.”

“What does that even mean?”

Bill smiled but kept his distance, “You’re a smart girl, figure it out yourself.”

Mabel huffed irritably and closed her eyes, “Are you going to kill me or not?”

“I haven’t decided yet.”

“Great, now I’m dealing with indecisive shapeshifter. This day just keeps getting better and better.”

“Silly human,” Bill hummed and walked closer, extending his blackened claw toward her, “Come on, I’ll walk you to where Pine Tree will be.”

Mabel inched away, “Who?”

“Your brother.”

“No, I’m not going anywhere with you. I’ll wait here until he finds me.”

Bill stared down at her with a scolding intensity, “At the rate he’s moving he won’t find you for a few days at most and by that time, you’ll be frozen to death.”

Mabel grunted as she used the bark of the tree to help herself to a standing position, “I’ll find him myself,” once she was upright, she took a small step forward and fell to the ground.

Bill tsked, “Shooting Star, you won’t get anywhere like this.”

“Just leave me alone.” She attempted to get up again only to fall back down.

“You’ll be killed.”

“I don’t care.” She sat back on her heels and tried once more, wincing in pain at the weight she bared on her injured leg. She reluctantly fell back down again and dropped her face in her hands.

“Are you sure about that?” Bill knelt down on one knee and leaned forward to look her in the eye, “As long as I’m here, you won’t be harmed.”

“That’s a real load of crap,” her voice cracked as a small sob escaped, “This is a trick.”

“Well, you and I know a lot about tricks, my dear,” Bill’s voice was soft, “This isn’t one of them.” Mabel glanced over as Bill’s hand was once again in front of her, “I’ll take you to where he will be. You’re safe…for now.”

Mabel took a few shuddering breaths as she considered the proposal. Either way, she was dead unless she found Dipper first and even then, there was no guarantee that Bill wouldn’t kill them both.

She wanted to see her brother again, even if it was just one last time.

Hesitantly, she brought her shaking hand up and placed it in his clawed hand. She sighed at the surprisingly soft texture of his skin. He was cool to the touch and her skin tingled at the contact. He gently helped her to a standing position. Save for holding her hand, he didn’t touch her at all.

As she came to a shaky stand, Bill quickly switched his hands to bring the other to her shoulder to keep her upright. Then he gestured eastward. Mabel turned slowly, limping a bit on her aching leg and cursing that she instinctively leaned on Bill like a pillar as they walked.

She grumbled, “Don’t make this into anything.”

Bill chuckled as he helped her along, “You’re anything but a distressing damsel to me, Shooting Star.”

Mabel grunted as she took slow, limping steps. Now that the danger was gone, sort of, she could feel all of her muscles aching from her previously panicked state. “Why are you calling me that?”

“Shooting Star?” Bill gripped her hand a little tighter, “You may not like the answer to that question.”

Mabel glared, “Why not?”

Bill hummed, “Well, I guess it doesn’t matter,” he assisted her over a rather large tree trunk that had fallen across the floor, “You’re beautiful to watch but incredibly destructive.”

Mabel nearly tripped over a protruding branch and fell into his arms, “Um,” she quickly righted herself and pushed him away, “I can walk on my own!”

Bill held up his hands and allowed her some space, “No need to worry,” he grinned as she kept him in her sight, “I want you alive for now.”

Mabel narrowed her eyes as she limped on and allowed Bill to walk two paces ahead, “How do I know you’re not leading me to a trap?”

“You don’t.”

She stopped, “Look, if you’re going to kill me, just kill me. Why wait?”

Bill paused in his step and turned his head, his eyes glinting angrily, “Because it’s fun for me.” Then he turned back around to continue on their path, “Pick up the pace. We’re almost at the road.”

A few minutes later, Bill was standing alongside the small road that cut through the forest.

Mabel stood just behind him and looked in either direction, “Where’s Dipper?”

Bill pointed one of his black claws down the road, “He’ll be driving from this direction in about five minutes,” he turned around to face her, “I won’t be here when he gets here of course.”

“Why not?”

Bill smirked and stood close to her, bringing his hand up to hover it just underneath her chin, “I think you know why.”

Mabel gulped and took a step back, “W-Why did you really help me?”

Bill tilted his head, “What other reason would there be aside from protecting someone I wish to kill myself at a later date?”

A chill ran down Mabel’s spine, “I-I don’t-“ She stopped when Bill tilted her chin up and she met his golden gaze, “Uh…”

Bill leaned his face closer to hers, his nose barely brushing against hers, “You certainly give me a run for my money. I like that.” He chuckled and moved away from her with a tiny wave, “I’ll be around, Shooting Star.”

Mabel watched as Bill disappeared into the darkness. He blended effortlessly with the shadows of the forest. She could still feel him watching her but his maliciousness was not detected at all. She hugged herself as her frazzled mind raced for answers.

Four minutes later, Dipper pulled up in his beaten up truck, “Mabel! Oh my gosh! I was so worried! Are you alright?!”

Mabel rushed to the other side of the truck, glancing quickly at the forest before climbing in the passenger seat of the cab, “Y-Yeah! I’m okay…just a little shaken. Drive, now.”

“What the hell happened to the wendigo?” Dipper accelerated down the road, “You didn’t kill it, did you?”

Mabel opened her mouth to respond but something stopped her. Maybe it was the shadow that flitted over the road as they drove along or the truth being way too strange to explain. She sunk further into her seat and closed her eyes, “I lost it in the woods.”

“You _lost_ it? How?”

“I _hid_ , Dipper…now, just,” she couldn’t take her eyes off that shadow, “Leave it alone, please.”

The rest of the drive to the nearest motel was spent in silence. After a thorough lockdown, Dipper laid out a plan for their next hunt. Mabel nodded along and when she turned in for the night while Dipper continued his research, she brushed her fingertips along her chin and looked towards the orange light shining through the window.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> More to come.
> 
> Thank you for reading. Comments are welcome and very much appreciated~


	3. Intrigue

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Bill shares some information with Mabel while simultaneously freaking her out...or intriguing her?

_One month later_

 

Bill glared at the tendril-formed creature attempting to pry its way into the Pines twins’ motel room. It took a few seconds but once the monster was aware of Bill’s presence, it regarded him suspiciously before slowly moving away into the darkness of the forest that lined around the motel.

He would have devoured the monster had he not recently fed on a lone werewolf and a small nest of young vampires in the last few weeks. His appetite was pretty satiated.  

He had forgotten just how delicious other monsters actually tasted. He had avoided them for a while, mostly out of solidarity, but since they were threatening his current point of interest, he decided to diet away from humans and segued into his own territory of delicacies.

If anything it was doing _amazing_ things for his figure. Not that he was really paying attention to that.

He hadn’t approached Shooting Star since their encounter in the woods. Had it not been for the fact that she was alone, he would have avoided her altogether.

It certainly was a strange thing. The night he realized her deception, he feasted on a kennel of shelter animals that were due to be exterminated. It was absolutely disgusting and for a while he was so incensed with rage he thought he would kill her in cold blood. That was something he hadn’t done in over two hundred years.

However, he had calmed down considerably enough to plot his revenge. He decided that she would be the first human he would devour after he tired of this silly fast. In the meantime, he would taunt her with his continued presence.

The Catch 22 of it all was that he was playing this waiting game again. Every single time he decided this day would be the day he would do it, he waved it off the minute he saw her. He didn’t understand why he hung around. He didn’t know _what_ he was waiting for.

She was lucky that she was so damned entertaining, that was for sure. He wasn’t sure if it was her silliness, her vivid imagination, or the way she subtly exposed her age in her eyes that made him itch for more of her existence.

Either way, he always stood by his assessment about her eyes. They were the most fascinating things about her.

The sky was overcast from an earlier storm system that had moved through the area. Rain water collected in the uneven areas of the mostly empty parking lot and it made the grey sky reflect metallically on the ground. The sun was about to set though it was hardly noticeable with how cloudy it was. The twins had still not returned from their hunt. Bill had decided not to trail them on this one. It was hardly necessary.

After all, he liked the idea of them getting a little roughed up.

When he saw a familiar truck pull into the motel’s parking lot, Bill inched closer into the shadows. From here, he could see that Shooting Star was driving and Pine Tree was leaning against the passenger window with his hand covering his eyes.

A hunt gone wrong possibly. Or a sibling quarrel.

They sat in the cab for a few minutes and based on their expressions, Bill could tell they had been in a severely heated argument. Very interesting.

Shooting Star’s expression was upset and disappointed while Pine Tree’s was a mixture of self-anger and frustration. Then, Pine Tree exited the cab and rounded to the other side, opening the door, “I need to go for a drive, Mabel. Please.”

Shooting Star gripped the wheel as she looked at him through tear-filled eyes, “Please be careful.”

Pine Tree nodded and as she got out the car, he pulled her into a hug, “I will.”

She moved to the sidewalk and watched as her brother pulled out of the spot. With a small wave, she saw him off. She looked down at the pavement, digging the heel of her sneaker on a crack.

Bill shook his head at the sight. She was starting to look like all the other humans he would kill. This was not acceptable. Maybe he would kill her today while she still left that impression on his mind.

When Shooting Star turned and fished out the key to the motel room, she instinctively glanced up (an old habit learned from years of monster hunting) and froze as she locked eyes with Bill. Her mouth opened slightly in shock and Bill wasn’t sure how to describe the myriad of expressions that passed through her eyes.

Either way, once it set in, she glared and turned immediately to the direction of the lobby area of the motel where she would no doubt break into the stairwell and make her way up to the roof where Bill was currently situated.

Bill grinned, _‘Perfect.’_

Sure enough, within ten minutes Bill could hear the tinkering of the stairwell door that led to the roof followed by the old door creaking open. He turned his head and saw long, brown hair flinging left to right as she looked for him.

When she found him, she cautiously approached him, keeping a safe distance, “What are you doing?”

“That seems to be your favorite question, Shooting Star.”

She crossed her arms and looked down at the empty parking spot in front of their room, “Answer the question.”

“Well, aren’t you demanding,” he remarked with a small eye roll, “I am where I want to be.”

“That doesn’t tell me much.”

“Was it supposed to?” Bill grinned, “You know, you’ve gotten yourself into a sticky situation, Shooting Star. After all,” he gestured to the parking lot, “You’re awfully high up with no one around.”

Mabel’s lips twitched and she shifted her weight onto one foot, her left hip jutting out, “So is today the day, then?”

“Hm?”

Mabel rolled her eyes, “I know you’ve been shadowing us, Bill,” she glared, “You’re not exactly subtle.”

Bill let out an airy laugh and looked at Mabel, his eyes relaxed and adoring, “Maybe I wanted you to notice.”

Mabel squinted, “What is your _deal_?”

Bill’s eyes glistened hopefully, “Deal?”

Mabel regarded him suspiciously before she elaborated, “Is this really your way of just messing with us or something?”

“Oh,” Bill looked in the direction of the woods, “I’m not obligated to explain myself.”

Mabel scoffed, “Stupid…”

“That’s not very nice.”

Mabel countered, “You’re not very nice.”

Bill stared at her for a good moment before huffing out a mirthless laugh, “Your short-term memory is astounding.”

“If you’re referring to when you saved me from the wendigo then it doesn’t count,” she crossed her arms over her chest as she sat down near the exit door, “You said it yourself, you’re saving me for later.”

Bill hummed quietly, “That’s true,” he walked closer to her, “But I was referring to before we revealed ourselves to each other.”

Mabel’s brows furled, “What? Like when we were fake dating?” When Bill raised his eyebrows, Mabel laughed sarcastically, “You can’t be serious? You mean you were actually genuine the entire time? No way, I don’t believe that for a second.”

Bill looked taken aback, “Who are you to say I wasn’t?”

“I was your potential dinner, so I can say whatever I want.”

Bill was quiet and he thought over his words carefully. He crossed one arm over his chest, while he used his other hand to stroke at his chin, “Do you really think everyone should have a pet pig?”

Mabel looked up at him incredulously before shaking her head and staring out over the parking lot, “There’s nothing wrong with having a pet pig.”

“There it is!” he responded with a wide smile, “So if you were at least a little genuine with me, then it’s fair to assume that I was genuine with you, don’t you think?”

Mabel shuddered, “That’s weird.”

“Why?”

“Because you were going to eat me!” she looked up at him with a glare in her eyes and, in Bill’s opinion, disappointment, “How could you-“ Mabel cut herself off with a growl and stood up, stomping angrily over to the edge of the roof to sir. He noticed her cheeks were red with frustration.

Bill exhaled through his nose and followed her, keeping a respectable distance and crouching so that he was somewhat on her level, “You’re upset.”

Mabel inched away a bit, pulling her knees to her chest, “Shut up.” She kept her gaze on the tree line.

Bill sat back and pressed his palms into the roof, crossing his ankles. He heeded to her request to keep quiet and for the first time he could see what his partial performance had done to her.

Even if she knew he was dangerous and that there was a chance he would devour her, there was obviously a part of her that believed in his charm and his kind words. True, they were merely words, but in Bill’s opinion, they were honest. His only lie was his humanity and even now, he was starting to question that.

Then again, she couldn’t exactly shake the blame. While he knew he was way above her pay grade as a monster hunter, even with her brother, Bill was too proud to admit that they nearly got the best of him that night. But long before that moment, he had already begun his descent into his overwhelming fondness for this human.

Fuck, the silence was doing them both some good. Mabel had calmed considerably and he was just now noticing the creatures that were silently lurking in the tree line.

Gnomes, little weaklings for the most part. Maybe he could have a light snack before his midnight travels.

The soft sound of Mabel’s shoes against the gravel on the roof alerted him and he looked over at the long-haired brunette. Her eyes were focused on the movement in the tree line as well. Bill glanced in that direction before looking back at her, “Do you see them?”

“Yes,” she whispered, “Gnomes.”

“An entire colony of them,” Bill grinned, “They won’t do you any harm while I’m here.”

“I don’t need you to fend off a colony of _gnomes_.”

“I know you don’t,” he nodded affirmatively, “But they’re more terrified of me than they are of you. That’s a fact, my dear.”

Mabel rolled her eyes and slipped her hair over her shoulder, fiddling with a few strands, “Dipper and I had a bad hunt earlier.”

Bill blinked, “Oh?” He was a little surprised by this admission.

“I got scared,” she recounted, “We had this giant troll beast cornered and unaware. Dipper was going to ambush it but right before he could, it grabbed a large boulder. It _knew_ he was there. It happened so fast…I screamed.”

Bill watched as her eyes became teary. He wasn’t sure if he liked it or despised it.

Mabel continued, “Dipper was angry. The monster escaped and bulldozed through a small home on its way back into the woods. If he had instigated that monster before I yelled for him to stop...he would have died…”

Bill looked down at her shoes. They were freshly muddy and wet. Blades of grass were stuck to the bottom and beneath the fresh dirt, Bill could see the stains of grass and mud from prior hunts. He didn’t know why he reached out his hand in offering but there it was. He grimaced silently as the gravel dug into his elbow when he planted on the roof.

Mabel regarded him and tucked her hands deeper into her sweater, a small blush formed on her cheeks, “I don’t know why I’m telling you this…”

“I don’t know why either,” he kept his hand extended. He was more curious about the twins’ expressions when they pulled up to the motel and why Pine Tree drove off immediately on his own. “Since you’ve started it, may I ask-“

“No. You may not,” she bit her lip, “I don’t want to talk about it.”

“Fair enough.” Bill was about to retract his hand but when he saw Mabel turn to face him and gently grab his hand, he looked at her curiously.

She was staring at his hand, feeling his skin with her fingertips experimentally. She made an intrigued and fascinated noise, “Your skin is _iridescent_.”

Bill chuckled, “That’s quite the observation.” His skin tingled at her light touches and he almost wanted to pull his hand away, however, that stupid indiscernible feeling inside made him hesitate. He suddenly realized that he couldn’t let her get the best of him. “Want to see what else I can do?”

Mabel hummed curiously but otherwise never took her eyes off his skin, his hand resting gently in her palm.

Bill flexed his palm and a small slit formed in the middle of his hand. The lining where his skin was ripping gurgled momentarily and at this point, Mabel’s eyes widened but she never let go. Not even when the slit tore open to reveal a small row of teeth and flickering tongue. Bill grinned at her reaction, pleased to see a nice mix of enchantment and horror in her eyes.

“You're not a shapeshifter…” Mabel’s grip became a little more intense as she stared in awe, “What exactly _are_ you?”

Bill allowed her to handle his hand gently as she felt for other spots. He could really get used to this. “Your best dream or your worst nightmare.” When Mabel raised an eyebrow at him, his smile reached his eyes, “Your _best nightmare_.”


	4. Injury

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Mabel realizes she's burying more secrets than she has room for.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I'm gonna reply to comments towards the weekend but I just wanted you all to know that I have read them and appreciate and love all of you! 
> 
> I'm honestly surprised and appreciative of the response this has received! <333

_Three months later_

 

Mabel exhaled through her nose as she assembled her tenth round of memory. Dipper had been gone for a few hours for supply shopping and he asked her to hold down the fort while he was away.

She had not heard or seen Bill in two months. There was a brief encounter with him a few weeks after their conversation on the roof when he showed her his insanely odd but fascinating hand feature, but it was a fleeting glance as she and Dipper were on a hunt.

Mabel shuddered when she remembered the mouth that had opened up on his palm. She was sort of glad she hadn’t seen him in a while. This was mostly because she wasn’t sure why she felt more fascinated than frightened.

She knew that she was always attracted to the fantastical side of life and her imagination certainly provided enough oddities for her to entertain. Seeing him in person, however, with his blackened skin and monster-like appearance but still _appearing_ as a handsome human, she felt conflicted.

Falling back on the bed with a bored huff, she ignored the cards as they tumbled off the bed. She was glad for popcorn ceilings. She traced a few patterns and formations before she started succumbing to a light nap.

_Clink…patter….clink, clink…_

Mabel wasn’t sure how long she dozed but the noises coming from the bathroom jolted her awake so fast she wavered from the whiplash. The sounds continued and increased in frequency when she got out of the bed and cautiously approached the door.

She took her small taser from her belt and gently pushed the door open. It creaked loudly and she winced at the prospect of whatever was hiding behind the door hearing it. The sounds stopped immediately.

When Mabel stepped inside she glanced in every direction, seeing nothing out of the ordinary at first. The shower curtains fluttered a bit, more towards the bottom, and Mabel cautiously made her way to the bath.

She lifted a shaky hand and gripped the curtain, yanking it back with a violent swish. She glanced down into the tub and sighed when she saw it was only a rat.

“You rascal,” she smiled and grabbed a hand towel, tossing it over the rat and picking it up, “You don’t belong in here.” She tossed her taser on the bed as she walked outside the hotel room, making her way to the edge of the forest where she released the rat. She made sure it scampered far enough away and headed back to the hotel room.

Once inside, she washed her hands and the entire time, she felt a sense of foreboding that she learned not to ignore. It was much different than hearing the sounds in the bathroom. It was quiet yet it was also stiff, as if someone, or something, were trying not to make a sound.

Mabel reached for her taser and bit her lip when she realized she left it on the bed. She turned around, her breath hitching in her chest when she saw a shadow moving slowly from between the twin beds. She looked around the counter top of the bathroom for something to use as a weapon.

Then, realizing it was now noticed, the creature rose slowly from between the beds. Mabel froze where she stood as the monster stared her down with a vicious snarl.

“Gremloblin…”

It was large, but nowhere near as big as it could be. It must have been an adolescent. Still, it was equally terrifying and probably more dangerous with its unpredictability. Mabel was cornered and essentially, feeling fucked.

The creature roared loudly and while its eyes were closed, Mabel dove forward and swiped her taser off the bed. Before she could fire a shot, the monster grabbed her by the ankle and threw her back against the counter.

Mabel’s back hit the mirror with an impressive force and it broke on contact. Before she could get up, it grabbed her again and dragged her forward. Mabel could feel shards of glass digging into her shoulder blades and slipping along her back. She winced and kicked her free leg down on the monster’s wrist. The force and speed was enough for the creature to let go.

In the three seconds it took for the monster to realize it was not injured, Mabel had stood up and ran past the creature. Mabel opened the door leading outside and ran out into the parking lot. She could hear the creature running between and _through_ the vehicles in the lot in chase.

Once she made it to the edge of the forest, she turned and aimed her taser, firing once the monster was three feet in front of her. Yep, it was definitely young. A more seasoned monster would have leapt out of the war or at least stayed a good distance away in standoff.

The monster hit the ground hard and twitched as Mabel adjusted the settings to the highest voltage. Once the smell of burning skin reached her nose she let up and watched as the young monster gave off a few more twitches before going stiff. It’s eyes and ears were leaking black fluid and it’s tongue, or what was left of it, was jutting out the side of its mouth.

She had killed it. Mabel bit her lip as her eyes welled with tears. She hated this part of the job. Even when it was justified, she felt terrible for killing these creatures. This one was young, and was probably just starting out its hunts, and it picked the wrong girl.

Mabel dropped her arms and released the used cartridge of the taser. Once she pocketed her taser, she walked over to the lifeless creature and dragged it by its arms to the bushes. She and Dipper would have to burn it later.

But before they could do that, Mabel made her way back to the hotel room and grabbed the pistol and the silencer. When she walked back to the creature, she realized it was taking very slow and shallow breaths. It had survived after all.

Oh no. Mabel shook her head, more at herself than anything, and aimed at the monster’s head, firing one shot. That was it.

She felt the stinging pain in her back and wiped at her eyes as she walked back to the room. She spent the better part of an hour picking glass out of her back where she could reach and when Dipper came back, the first thing he noticed was the pistol sitting on his bed.

“Hey, what’s my pistol doing-oh,” he finally noticed the broken mirror and Mabel sitting on the floor, shirtless and picking glass shards from her back, “What the hell happened?!”

“Gremloblin,” Mabel explained, wincing as she picked another piece of glass, “I need your help…”

“Yeah, yeah!” Dipper set his stuff down and joined Mabel on the floor.

Mabel held her shirt over her chest and tried to sit still as Dipper tended to the rest of the scratches and cuts she sustained.

“You killed it, right?” Dipper asked with a sense of hesitancy.

“Yes.”

“Really?” Dipper sounded worried, “You made sure it was dead?”

“Yes. I shot it.” Mabel’s voice shook for a moment, “It was young.”

“Mabel, you did the right thing,” Dipper poured more peroxide over her back, “It would have killed you.”

Mabel stayed silent and as Dipper wrapped her up, she gestured to the window, “The body is in the bushes,” she ran her hands through her hair, “We need to burn it.”

“We can do that later,” Dipper picked up the first aid kit, “If it’s dead, it’s dead.”

Mabel whimpered as she hunched over, “This hurts so much…”

Dipper shook his head and grabbed his journal, “It’s gonna hurt for a while until those cuts heal. At least they weren’t too deep.”

Mabel climbed onto her bed and hugged her pillow, “I’m so tired of this…”

Dipper was quiet for a moment as he read through the journal, “Tired of what?”

“This monster hunting stuff,” she took a deep breath, “It’s not going to bring Grunkle Stan and Grunkle Ford back.”

Dipper closed the book, “Mabel, we’ll find the damn thing that killed them eventually. It’ll just keep killing. We have to stop it.”

“Dipper-“

“If you don’t want to do this anymore, I get it,” he looked at her with gentle eyes, “You don’t have to stick with me.”

“You’ll get yourself killed without me,” she smiled, “I just think you should let this go.”

Dipper made a noise, “Maybe, but for now, it gives me a purpose.”

Mabel’s eyes became teary, from the physical pain and from the pain in her heart, “I miss them so much.”

Dipper took a shaky breath, “Me, too.”

The next day, Mabel was in a searing amount of pain even after several changes to her bandages.

“Ugh, is it supposed to hurt this much?” She was resting on her stomach and hanging off the edge of the bed, “It’s annoying.”

“Maybe if you didn’t roll over so much last night it wouldn’t hurt as much.”

“Ugh.”

Dipper hummed as he grabbed he peroxide, “I’m gonna go get more first aid stuff. We can’t let that get infected.”

“You’re leaving again?” Mabel looked up with a frown, “Aren’t we supposed to check out soon?”

“Gotta stay one more day,” Dipper said as he grabbed his wallet, “The ghost in that lady’s house is way above a category three. It’s gonna take more than a simple exorcism.”

Mabel rolled her eyes, “Alright, I’ll be here. Holding the fort. As always.”

“I’m sorry, Mabel,” Dipper patted her head, “You know exorcisms work best with as little people as possible.”

“Blah, blah, blah,” she murmured, pitching her voice in a nasally tone, “It gets boring when I’m here by myself.”

“Well, I won’t be too long,” he opened the door, “I’ll get you some candy while I’m there.”

“Gummies, please!”

Dipper laughed, “Alright,” with that, he closed the door and in ten minutes, Mabel was kicking her feet on the bed.

Nothing was on the television and she was starting to get antsy. Every now and then, a shadow would flit across the window and Mabel counted the number of times it would cross over before the next one.

Living with Dipper, she learned the importance and meticulousness of numbers and codes. By proxy and not because she actually wanted to, she started noting the codes the same way Dipper did. Most of the times it meant nothing but considering the frequency and the peculiar, rhythm-like manner in which the shadows danced over the floor of the hotel room, Mabel realized this was more than silly shadows.

Either way, it was more fun than sitting here. She took out a sheet of paper and began counting. 13…5…5….20. The shadows stopped for longer than five seconds, then started again. 13…5. They stopped once again. 15…14. Mabel bit her lip as she waited for the next series. 20…8…5. The next break was ten seconds. 18…15…15…6. The last few numbers went in a flurry and Mabel had a hard time keeping count. 19…8…15…15…20…9…14…7 19…20…1…18.

Mabel wrote the letters of the alphabet for a reference and once she decoded the message, her heart skipped a beat.

MEET ME ON THE ROOF SHOOTING STAR

Mabel looked up at the ceiling and took a breath, “What…do you want.”

She debated her options. On one hand, she could die and on the other, she could still die. Mabel was starting to tire of this lifestyle. She threw her legs over the bed and grabbed her holster, making sure she had a fresh cartridge in the taser and plenty of bullets in her pistol.

Her back was killing her and she fastened the holster to her hip with a slight wince. Dipper wouldn’t return for another hour or so. She had plenty of time.

She made her way to the roof and sure enough, Bill was standing a few feet from the edge overlooking the parking lot.

When she stepped into view, Bill turned his head and smiled, “Good evening, Shooting Star,” he regarded her visible holster with a light chuckle, “Preparing for battle?”

Mabel blushed and glanced down, “You missed the party earlier.”

Bill squinted, “I’m sorry?”

“The gremloblin,” Mabel gestured to the bush where the body was previously stashed, “I was attacked earlier.”

“Oh, I know, I saw the whole thing.”

Mabel recoiled angrily, “Wait, what?!”

Bill raised an eyebrow, “You’re a pretty impressive fighter but you’re a little too sympathetic.”

“You…” Mabel’s face went red, “You saw the whole thing and you didn’t think to help? What happened to ‘protecting your investment?’ Or whatever that means.”

Bill huffed, “I’m not obligated to help you every time,” he pointed his chin towards the bush, “Besides, it was a young creature and I had already had a meal.” He glared at her, “You should see the other creatures I’ve devoured that had their eyes set on you and your brother.”

Mabel looked away as she walked closer. She knew he was probably right but she didn’t want to apologize. He was planning to kill her anyway. “Do you always follow us around?”

“Not all the time,” he hummed as he turned around to walk over to the piping, taking a seat and crossing his ankles, “I know you’ve noticed my absences.” He smiled teasingly, “Did you miss me?”

Mabel rolled her eyes, “Like the flu,” she responded sarcastically and sat beside him only a few feet away. She squinted a bit as she rested her back against the wall but she would be damned if she would show how injured she was in front of Bill.

Bill was watching her curiously, “Where’s Pine Tree?”

“Went out for supplies,” she said before she could stop herself, “He’ll be back soon.”

“Hm,” Bill squinted his eyes, eyeing her suspiciously, “Your wounds are getting infected.”

Mabel glanced at him, “No, they’re not,” she tsked, “I’m cleaning them every three hours.”

“Don’t argue with me,” he glared, “I know infection when I smell it. And I can smell it on you from a mile away.”

Mabel squirmed, “That’s weird.”

“Let me see them.”

Mabel looked in either direction, “Uh, excuse me?”

“Your wounds. Let me see them.”

Mabel hugged her arms, “N-No…I’d have to take my shirt off.”

“No, you don’t,” Bill stood up and extended his hand, “Come here.”

Mabel looked at his hand and shook her head, “No…”

Bill fixed her with a stern stare, “Do you want to die?”

Mabel closed her eyes, the conflict showing in the creases of her forehead, “ _Why_ do you care?”

“Protecting my invest-“

“Oh, stop! You’re so full of it!” Mabel stood up and walked towards the edge, “Are you lonely or something? Is that why you’re doing this?!” She sat down at the edge and looked out into the forest. She could see the road from here and watched for Dipper’s truck. With it getting darker, she could see the headlights shining over the slope before the cars would appear.

Bill was silent and for a moment, Mabel thought he left. She looked over her shoulder and saw him standing in the same spot, his stern gaze fixed on her. Mabel turned back and drew her knees to her chest, the stretch causing the wounds on her back to stretch and tear open. The pain was worse now and she felt a chill. She realized that Bill was right…her wounds were infected.

As if on cue, Bill approached her from behind, knelt down, and put his hands, his _human_ hands, gently on her shoulders, “Shooting Star…”

Mabel took a deep breath, “W-What are you going to do?”

Bill made a sarcastic noise, “Summoning ritual, thankfully you’re the right age and have just the right amount of innocence left.”

Mabel blinked, “Wow. Please tell me that’s a joke.”

Bill laughed, “I’m going to speed up the healing process. Clearing the infection is the tricky part but it shouldn’t be a problem. I haven’t done this in a long time.”

“Healing someone? We’re gonna have to talk about your species.”

Bill exhaled through his nose, “There’s not much to say about my species, I’m all there’s left.” He patted her waist, “I need you to lift your shirt so I can see your wounds.”

Mabel gulped and hesitated before grabbing the edges of her shirt and lifting it to where it exposed her torn up back. Goosebumps formed on her skin immediately and she pressed her knees tighter against her chest. “I still want to know…” She jumped when she felt Bill removing the bandages.

“I’ll tell you about it later.”

Mabel could hear the sound of his hands morphing into his clawed ones and she braced her self, “Promise?”

“Of course.”

Mabel held out her fist, pinky extended, “Swear.” There was a small pause and she smiled when she heard Bill chuckle and linked his claw with her pinky finger.

“Alright,” he rolled his wrists, “Be quiet and keep still. This could take a few minutes.”

Mabel exhaled and closed her eyes, “Okay,” she kept very still. She expected a cold touch to her skin but instead, it was warm yet minty and she felt her blood rushing to her back. It was like a rush but at the same time, it felt slowed down. She couldn’t exactly pin down the sensation she was feeling since she had never felt anything like this.

She could hear Bill taking deep breaths in concentration as he moved his hands along her back. Once she was accustomed to the feeling, she opened her eyes and stared at the parking lot, memorizing the car license plates she could see. Before she could get to the end of the lot, Bill removed his hands and fell back on his heels.

Mabel turned around and her eyes widened.

His blackened skin had trailed up into his face and his eyes were glowing yellow. His human shape was slightly twisted. He looked like he was fighting against morphing into his original form. There was something moving near his midsection and Mabel could hear it making some kind of whining noise.

“B-Bill?” She recoiled in fear when Bill glared up at her and snarled. Even as he maintained that human face, he didn’t look human at all.

His eyes returned to normal and he grimaced, “I…need to eat,” his voice was deep and monstrous even though he spoke so softly. He pointed to the stairwell with his unusually sharp claws, “Go.”

Mabel bit her lip and stood shakily. She was torn between making sure he was alright and getting the hell out of there fast.

To Bill, she wasn’t fast enough. He shouted and grabbed his midsection when it lurched with a squelching sound, “Hur-ry!”

Mabel ran. She nearly tumbled down the stairs and almost dropped her hotel room key twice before she was safely inside. She checked the seals on the doors that kept supernatural beings at bay and poured some salt near every entrance. She saw Bill’s shadow fly over the window and she peeked beneath the curtain where the violent rustling of trees and the sounds of cicadas covered whatever was happening in the forest.

She gulped and fell into a seated position on the bed and touched her back, realizing she felt no pain or discomfort at all. She carefully removed her shirt and walked over to the mirror. Her eyes widened.

All of her wounds were healed and the skin on her back was clearer than it ever had been. It was as if she had never been hurt at all.

She could still feel Bill’s touch.

Bill. Mabel blushed and pulled her shirt back over her head. She realized she might never figure his motives out. He had no reason to want to keep her around and she had no reason not to kill him. Now he was keeping her safe and offering to heal her? There had to be a catch somewhere.

She was determined to figure it out.

Her attention was alerted to the familiar look of Dipper’s headlights and the sound of his truck and she sighed with relief.

“Oh shit,” her eyes widened when she realized that she had no idea how she was going to explain her completely healed back to Dipper.

She glanced in either direction when she heard Dipper approach the door. Then, she flung herself back and closed her eyes, pretending to be asleep. The door opened with a small click and her heart raced at the few seconds between Dipper setting down his loot of supplies and making himself comfortable.

“Hey, Mabel, I got the stuff from the supply store. It should be time to change your bandages by now.”

Mabel could feel sweat collecting on her neck and she gulped. She feigned waking from a nap and stretched, “Hey,” as she rubbed her eyes, she suddenly had a thought, “I think I’m gonna go take a shower first. Wash all the gunk out and then I’ll clean them.” 

Dipper raised a brow in question, “You sure?”

Mabel nodded and maneuvered off of the bed, “I won’t be long.” She pointed to the numerous bags and duffles, “I see you got some good stuff.”

Dipper sat down on his bed and smiled, “Yeah, a lot of black market equipment. Most of it’s from eastern Europe. One of Ford’s old friends knew a couple of hunters out there and he fixed us up with some stuff.” 

Mabel blinked and she felt a hard weight in her stomach at the thought of their new, much more intense arsenal, “We’re not...going after anything more than what we can handle, right?”

Dipper took a deep breath and rubbed the back of his neck, “Not yet. We’re gonna have to get used to these things. They’re not exactly made for simple hunts. It’ll take some time.”

Mabel shook her head, her lips pursed and her eyes stern, “Dipper...you said it wouldn’t get this far…”

“I know but…” Dipper paused, a look of annoyance crossing his face through the creasing of his brows and he shook his head and grabbed one of the bags, rummaging through it passively, “You know, I really don’t want to have this conversation right now. I’m tired, and I’d like to go to bed. Hurry up and take your shower so I can help you with your back.”

Mabel glared and angrily stomped over to Dipper’s bed, aggressively searching the plastic bags until she found the one with the first aid supplies, “Don’t worry about it. I’ll take care of it myself." 

Dipper sighed, “Mabel…come on-”

Mabel slammed the bathroom door shut and dropped the bag on the floor, covering her face with her hands. She took a deep breath through her nose and turned the water on. She removed her clothing and stepped in the shower, letting the sound of the water gushing from the shower head mask her crying. 

She wasn’t sure how much more of this life she could take. It seemed the more they hunted, the more dangerous and the more aggressive the monsters became. She realized that if it weren’t for Bill watching out for them in the hopes of killing them himself, they both would have been dead a long time ago. 

Now that Dipper was looking into more serious weaponry made specifically for hunting monsters, Mabel became more terrified. Dipper thought it would make them safer while Mabel believed it was making them more of a target. 

Either way, she longed for the days when she went to bed holding her stuffed animals close to her. A hotel pillow wasn’t bad but it just wasn’t the same…

She turned the shower off and rummaged through the bag for the sake of sounding like she was tending to her own wounds. For appearances sake she reapplied bandages where they had been before so that Dipper wouldn’t suspect anything. She just needed to be patient for a few days and then he would be off her back about it. Literally.

As long as she kept to herself, she figured he wouldn’t suspect anything. She didn’t like the idea of keeping a secret from Dipper, much less that secret being Bill of all things.

She also wasn’t sure why she was more concerned about Dipper hunting Bill than him finding out about Bill keeping them both safe (relatively) for the past few months.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> There's going to be a much larger time jump in the plot between this event and the next.


	5. Sacrifice

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Warning: Slightly graphic depictions of violence and...death.

_Six months later_

 

Bill exhaled, his chest deflating slowly as he reclined against a broken chair in the dump near the woods. Opening his eyes to the midnight sky, he was relieved to feel normal again.

Well, normal within his standards anyway.

He completely overestimated himself when he decided to heal Mabel all those months ago. After her scars cleared and the infection faded away, he felt his energy deplete rapidly and _dangerously_. Had he not had an ounce of clarity to warn her, he knew he would have devoured her on the spot. He still wasn't ready to kill her just yet, and not in that way.

Once she was well out of range, he used what was left of his energy to launch himself into the woods and devour the first thing he found that was alive.

It was a little unfortunate for the campers a few miles from the hotel. It was the first time in months that he’d tasted human blood.

Unfortunately it wasn't enough and to replenish his health, he would have to collect on _other_ things.

As luck would have it, he had two humans whose bargains had come full circle. He waited two weeks for one and six months for the other. Bill always found it amusing that these humans would barter more years of their lives for more time. Normally, Bill would entertain it if not for amusement but unfortunately for his most recent clients, he was way too hungry. Their time was up.

“Mm,” Bill hummed low in his throat as he felt the tail end of the last soul he devoured work it’s way through his chest. To him, the taste was akin to honey and caramel. Going down smoothly and with a sweet taste on the finish. “Very nice.”

It was a relief. After feeling weak and incapacitated for nearly half a year of complete starvation, he was anxious to get back to work. He had only a small roster of deals in process, most not ready to cash in for five years or more, and he knew that if he was going to expel his energy to even _make_  deals, he needed to have some cushion in the bank for the deeds.

He realized he would have to negotiate smaller ones for smaller amounts of time. Bill groaned irritably and rubbed his forehead at the prospect. If he had known it was going to be this _taxing_ he never would have sacrificed his omnipotence for a physical form.

But the perks were enjoyable enough to make it worth the frustration. He enjoyed the senses of touch, smell, and taste. He enjoyed all of it. He could still remember the rough texture of the leaves in the graveyard and running his clawed hand over the stones of the graves, which was the first thing he did when he finally gained his physical form.

Tasting leaves was a bad idea, however. Bill chuckled  and relaxed, stretching his arms over his head and closing his eyes.

As he reminisced on that broken chair, he stretched his legs out and ignored the pinging sensation in the back of his head. Someone was trying to summon him but he was too tired to follow through. 

Then they became urgent. He frowned and realized that he could probably use this instead of being lazy.

He kicked his legs out to swing himself up and stretched. It wouldn’t take much energy. He closed his eyes and focused on the person attempting to contact him.

Whoever needed him was _desperate_. Which would make this deal nice and sweet to make.

When he opened his eyes, he saw he was in the woods only in a much different area than where the dump was. The forest looked eerily familiar and a thick layer of snow blanketed the bed of the floor. Whatever trees maintained their leaves had patches of ice peppered along their branches and the dead birch trees gave stark contrast to the grey sky.

He _had_ been here before. There was a small commotion behind him. A familiar voice urging someone to keep it together and to “hold on just a bit longer.” Bill stared down at the ground, his shoes were getting soaked by the melting snow beneath him. He turned his head and set his gaze on something he always hoped to see but now was rethinking now that it was right in front of him.

It was Shooting Star...crying and hunched over Pine Tree’s body. 

Pine Tree, for lack of a better phrase, had seen better days. Bill wasn’t that familiar with human anatomy but he was sure their torsos shouldn’t twist _that_ much. His spine was wrung out like a rag, his eyes lifeless, and blood seeped from his ears and mouth.

Bill’s lips set into a thin line as Shooting Star was talking to him as if he were still alive. She was urging him to hold on, that everything would be okay. She seemed to be ignoring the obviousness of his fatal injuries.

Bill looked just to the left of Shooting Star and saw the summoning circle drawn in the snow with Dipper’s photo in the middle. He exhaled, a puff of air escaping his nose in an airy tendril.

He knew exactly where this was going. And he knew he didn’t have the energy to do it.

The sound of Shooting Star gasping caught his attention. She was on her knees staring at him with her eyes agape and her jaw tightened. 

Bill cleared his throat, “Shooting Star,” he greeted, “What can I do for you?”

“Bill…” a puff of air escaped between her lips as she spoke his name, “You…you _are_ a demon...”

“It seems so,” Bill replied condescendingly and raised his brow, “Glad to see you’ve finally figured that one out.”

She blinked away the shock and looked down at Dipper, the tears were drying on her face and her cheeks were red from the cold. “Y-You c-can you bring him back, r-right?”

Well that didn’t take long. Bill shook his head despondently, “That depends on what you have to offer me.”

Shooting Star’s breathing picked up and she stood quickly, “A-Anything! Please…”

Bill understood it would take more than her soul to give him the energy to fuel this deal but it would likely be enough to keep him level enough until he could eat something. However, he wasn’t sure he was convincing himself of it,  “You can’t afford it.”

She blinked for a few moments, her resolve determined, “Please, Bill,” she walked closer, keeping a safe distance, her eyes were filling with tears, “ _Please_.”

Bill hated everything about his existence in this moment. Normally, he wouldn’t pay mind about sucking the soul out of the obligor to ensure the proper execution of his duties. Full and upfront payment was always best anyway. However, he was hesitant to do so now. Something he had been looking forward to had now become the last thing he wanted to do and he despised himself for it.

Shooting Star was now standing directly in front of him. _Fuck_ , with the look in her eyes, she was practically _begging_ him to take her life and here he was, telling her no. 

She wasn’t quite eye level with him but her presence was just as commanding as the tallest tree in the forest. Bill was surprised that she, without a secondary thought, put her hands on his shoulders. “You healed me, so I _know_ you can bring him back.”

Bill glared, an expression mostly aimed at himself, “There you go with those bold assumptions again, Shooting Star,” he said lowly took her hands and held them in front of him, “You have nothing I want.” That was a lie. “No deal.”

There was a flash of anger in her eyes before her emotions completely took over. Her eyes closed tightly and the tears fell freely down her cheeks. Her knees buckled a bit and Bill thought she was going to fall. Then, she withdrew her hand, delivering a harsh and powerful punch to Bill’s chest, “You fucking bastard! Why?!” She fell to the ground with a few painful sobs, “Why are you doing this?! What was the point?!”

Bill stumbled back in surprise and tried to catch his breath as he watched her fall to the ground in tears, muffled screams directing into the ground. Her cries were angry, sad, heartbroken, and hopeless. Bill felt something tug in his chest at the sight. He didn’t understand it and it was something he never really intended on learning.

Maybe it was that he _hated_ the fact that she had been reduced to this. 

He would never see that light in her eyes again. She would fade and blend into the norm. Bill's gaze flitted over to the mangled body of Pine Tree, the brunette’s hazel eyes turned lifelessly to the sky. Bill’s eyes narrowed angrily.

Then, he straightened himself out and brushed the snow off the front of his shirt. He watched Shooting Star for a moment longer as she continued to cry into the snow. He could end her misery and kill her now. He _should_ just kill her now. After all, there was no hope in her ever returning to her normal self after this.

Bill closed his eyes, his transformation working up, _‘Fuck it.’_


	6. Parting Gift

Mabel felt a sharp brush of air brush past her and she looked up to see that Bill had vanished. She looked all around before standing up and searching behind the nearby trees, “Bill?”

The wood was heavy with silence. Mabel sucked in a breath as she felt another sob work it’s way up her throat. _‘Bastard.’_ She turned around and made her way back to Dipper’s mangled body, her eyes squeezed shut. She couldn't bear to look at him like this.

Her last resort failed her. It came as such a shock because she always suspected that Bill was in the demon family.

Actually seeing him standing there in the snow…everything made sense and confused her at the same time.

She blindly reached her hand for Dipper's, lacing her fingers with his and stared into the distance. The snow was soaking through her clothes and she shivered violently against the cold. It would be dark soon and in order to fulfill Dipper’s wishes in his living will, she would need to start moving.

If only she were ready to accept it. She began crying again. At this rate, she would never leave.

About an hour later, she pried her hand away and began the walk to the road where Dipper’s truck was parked. She had covered Dipper’s body in a small mound of snow, placing a few leaves as an indicator for when she came back. She made it about halfway when she stopped to cry again.

Finally, when she made it to the truck, she reached into the passenger backseat and grabbed one of Dipper's duffel bags. After slinging it over her shoulder, she started the walk back. It was less than a hundred feet away and it was something that made her predicament sting horribly.

They had _almost_ made it. The gremloblin Mabel had killed six months ago was apparently still under the wing of its family and its mother was _pissed_.

It had tracked them down while they were on a small hunt for a small gnome colony that was persistent in robbing the nearby town’s citizens of their chickens.

The mother gremloblin had cornered them and attacked relentlessly. Dipper and Mabel had no time to counter. So they ran.

Mabel saw plenty of opportunities to slow the creature down but she was too afraid to risk it for her own safety. And her hesitance cost Dipper his life.

A shudder ran through her and shook her to the core. The image of Dipper being grabbed and held by his head and his hip was the last thing she could see before she turned away. She could still hear the crunching and snapping sounds of bone.

At the time, as soon as she heard it, she vomited four times until she was dry heaving. The mother gremloblin seemed perturbed by the putrid smell and eventually ran off but not before tossing Dipper’s body towards her as a gesture of warning and revenge.

Mabel knew she had blacked out from shock for a few hours as Dipper’s lifeless eyes turned up at her. When her clarity returned, she went through their Uncle Ford's journal and tried _everything_ to bring Dipper back before turning to making a deal with a demon. She was ready to give up her soul to bring him back.

And she was a mixture of shocked and heartbroken when Bill denied her. She thought he would jump at the opportunity to take her soul considering the circumstances. Then again, maybe this was his way of hurting her more. She knew demons thrived on the pain and suffering of others but Bill always seemed to go between those things. 

Mabel scoffed. Bill didn’t make any sense. Now she would have to bury-

Something odd was happening where Mabel had buried Dipper beneath the snow. She dropped the duffel bag as she stared at the disturbed top of the mound. 

Dipper was sitting up as if he had woken from a nap. Dipper...was alive.

Mabel knew better than to trust what she  _thought_ she could see. Slowly, she reached for the duffel bag and unzipped it, quietly pulling out a pistol. I

Dipper looked around, his body language giving off so much confusion. When his eyes finally landed on Mabel, he seemed relieved, “M-Mabel? W-What…what h-happened?”

Mabel dropped the pistol and let out a shaky breath. It felt like it took an eternity to reach him. As soon as she was standing beside him, she touched his shoulder. He was warm to the touch, warm with blood rushing through his veins.

Warm with life.

Mabel bit her lip and pulled Dipper into a tight hug as she cried.

Dipper returned the hug and took a shaky breath, “I…I died…didn’t I?”

Mabel could only nod as she held him tighter, burying her face into his shoulder.

They sat there for a few minutes until Dipper moved himself out of the snow mound and took a few deep, thankful breaths, “Mabel, I had a strange vision just before I woke up,” he spoke softly and slightly stuttered as he rested his chin on Mabel’s shoulder, “I was standing in the middle of the woods and I heard a voice. Someone… _someone_ told me that there were no strings attached.”

Mabel blinked and pulled back, “W-What?”

Dipper shrugged as he struggled to remember, “They said something like ‘no strings attached’ and that they ‘enjoyed the times while they lasted,’” he stood shakily, “I don’t know, Mabel it was weird. Then I felt this jolt like I fell from the sky and landed back here.” He hissed in pain and held his head, “Ah, fuck…migraine…”

Mabel covered her mouth as she stood up. Bill did…but they never made a _deal_. Did he just bring Dipper back for the hell of it? Mabel looked up towards the trees as Dipper walked around, trying to regain the sensation in his legs. ‘ _Bill…what...’_

Dipper shuffled his feet in the snow and stared down at the symbol scrawled messily on the ground, “Hey...is this a pentagram?” He paused and stared at his sister sternly, “Mabel…you didn’t...?”

Mabel shifted from heel to heel, “It…it didn’t work.”

Dipper blinked, he didn't believe it for a second, “So, _how_ am I back?”

Mabel shook her head with a wry smile, “I don’t know...”

Dipper huffed and looked back at the pentagram. Mabel could tell the gears were turning in his head, and he was putting all the pieces together. Then Dipper looked at her affirmatively, “Which demon?” When Mabel shook her head, Dipper’s jaw twitched, “It...it was Bill, wasn't it?” When Mabel didn't answer, Dipper kicked at the pentagram, "Dammit, Mabel..."

"I'm sorry-"

"Do you have any idea what you just did?!" Dipper's loud voice echoed through the forest, "Do you realize what he's going to do to you now?!"

Mabel shook her head and wiped at her face, "He told me he wasn't going to bring you back, Dipper..."

Dipper held his arms out in a gesture, "Yet here I am! Mabel, what were you thinking?!"

Mabel glared, "You said you had a vision about someone saying there were no strings attached. Maybe he just="

Dipper laughed, "You're saying he did this out of the kindness of his heart? No way."

Mabel sighed and shrugged her shoulder, her heart felt like it was breaking all over again. "Dipper, I was getting ready to cremate you..." She felt tears well in her eyes and she continued in a shaky voice, "He **told** me he wouldn't bring you back...and now you're here." She dropped her shoulders, "What do you want me to say?"

Dipper's features softened and he looked down at the ground again, "Mabel...you," he stopped himself and put his hands on his hips, thinking his words over. Finally, he looked towards the truck and gestured for Mabel to come closer, "Come on, let's...let's go." When Mabel reached him, Dipper pulled her into a tight hug, "I'm sorry, Mabel...I'm sorry."

Mabel sniffled and hugged Dipper back, "I'm sorry, too..."

Dipper pulled back and led them to the truck, assisting Mabel with the duffel, "We'll take a break for a while. Lay low."

Mabel walked alongside him, holding his arm supportively, “For how long?”

Dipper glanced at her quickly, “I don’t know. We’ll play it by ear. You need to tell me everything about Bill, though. Just in case he tries to collect...”

Mabel nodded but otherwise made no response. Her mind was preoccupied with Bill’s gesture.

When they got to the car, Mabel offered to drive to the nearest motel. She was expecting to tell Dipper all of what she learned about Bill but as soon as Dipper rested against the window, he was out like a light. Mabel decided to let him rest. It gave her time to think about had just happened with Bill.

She understood vaguely how demonic energy worked. In order for a demon to execute a deal, they expel a bit of energy to make the bind, similar to a downpayment. The energy it would take to fuel the deal was the tricky part and based on how much energy it took for Bill to simply heal her and clear her infection, she imagined it would have taken substantially more to bring someone back from the dead. Especially since they never made a binding promise. 

Bill wasn't like most demons. He was organic...had a physical form. That in and of itself took energy to maintain.

Bill most likely used a bulk if not all of his energy to bring Dipper back. Mabel wondered if she would _ever_ see him again. 

An intrusive thought suggested that maybe losing Bill _was_ payment for getting Dipper back. Mabel shook that thought away quickly as she drove down the highway. 

The ache in her chest stayed with her for the rest of the drive.


	7. Light Talk

Over the next few weeks, Dipper had a hard time adjusting to his return to the land of the living. At first, he seemed relatively complacent but the more time allowed for settling, he became anxious and uneasy. His nights became sleepless and Mabel would stay awake with him as he worked through a panic attack from his night terrors.

This continued sporadically for months.

They hunted less and less until, eventually, they decided to take a break and find somewhere quiet to wade out Dipper’s bouts of anxiety. After some house hunting (Mabel found that ironic), they were able to rent a small house in the suburbs outside of Gravity Falls, Oregon. The house was adequately sized for two people to share a space comfortably and the rent was more than affordable for their savings to manage. The only issue was the upkeep of the cash flow.

Mabel hunted down her old username and password for her online store and began selling her handmade sweaters again. Dipper found a part-time job as sales clerk in a comic book store during the day and another part-time job as a night-shift guard in a storage facility. It was pretty dead work and it gave him time to study his late uncle’s journals.

In the meantime, Mabel also found some part-time work at a nursing home closer to the city. She only worked four days out of the week and for those days she worked the early bird shift starting at six in the morning until one in the afternoon. After she was finished with that, she would work on her sweaters. With their pooled income, they were able to manage the bills and groceries easily with enough money left over each month for a small splurge and savings.

Before they realized it, it had been a year since Dipper’s fatal accident in the woods and Mabel was surprised that she hadn’t given a single thought to the one who brought him back. She ignored the way it made her chest ache and was secretly thankful that things were so different now, though she was sad knowing that Dipper had to go through such a terrible experience to have a change of mind. But the reality was further from the truth.

Dipper was chomping at the bit to go hunting again. She could tell by the way he spoke in clipped sentences about how his days went at his jobs and how he would lock himself in his room for hours on end. The light under his door never shut off.

As the months passed in tranquil peace and calm, Mabel quickly forgot everything about their lives living as hunters of the supernatural. Normalcy was good medicine after years and years of strangeness but, of course, old habits always die hard.

As per their custom, the house was carefully equipped with fail-safes in the event of a supernatural (or natural) happening. There were seals and traps painted on the entryways of each door and air ducts, fresh lines of salt on the windowsills, herbs hanging near every doorway, and weapons secretly installed in various areas of the home.

If the renters ever found out, they would have a _shit-fit._

Mabel wondered off-handedly if it would even keep _him_ out. Then again, she had not seen a single sign that he was lingering around. Every time a shadow flitted across the window of her bedroom she thought about him. When the realization that it was only a passing car sunk in, she couldn’t help but feel disheartened.

And she couldn’t understand _why._

She would be forever grateful for having her brother back but Bill’s motives were still so unclear. Once he revealed himself to be one of the most powerful demons on their plane, she knew that he was way above she and Dipper’s pay grade in the hunting department.

So _why_ did he save Dipper at no cost?

Mabel couldn’t make sense of it and there wasn’t much lore on organic demons that she could find. Bill seemed to be the only one and he blended in so well with other monsters that the twins _easily_ mistook him for a shape-shifter.

She never told Dipper about him. Her encounters with the demon remained with her and were probably the only secrets she hated to keep from her brother. She rationed that one day she would come forward but only when the hunting world was completely behind them and she was sure that Bill was gone for good.

She didn’t want to risk Dipper going on an impromptu hunt. She was determined to help him live their lives as normally as possible.

Mabel stepped out of the shower and tied her hair up into a messy bun after she got into her pajamas. It was nearly midnight and normally she would have been in bed by now but with her new project keeping her adrenaline pumping and her day off awaiting her, she couldn’t bring herself to sleep.

She hopped onto her bed and grabbed her teddy bear, placing it in her lap as she turned on her small television for some white noise while she worked on her next few sweater designs. She smiled when she saw one of her favorite childhood movies was on. This was already becoming one of her cherished memories in this new life.

They finally had a home, had decent-paying jobs, and were finally relaxed. Mabel couldn’t think of a better way to live a peaceful life.

About an hour into her draft, the lights in her room started flickering. Instinct had her paranoid but the possibility of it being a trip in the system made her go back to work within a few seconds.

Then it happened again. Mabel dropped her pen and stared at the wall. When it stopped, Mabel dismissed it and decided that if it continued, she would call Dipper. He was working the night shift tonight. So she was all alone.

Ten minutes passed and the lights remained stable. Mabel breathed a sigh of relief, keeping her senses poised for battle just in case.

Then the power went off completely. Mabel tensed as darkness flooded the room. She immediately glanced out the window to see the streetlights had gone out as well. She craned her neck to see her neighbor’s house but she couldn’t tell if their power had also gone out.

Carefully, Mabel slid off the bed and inched towards her bedroom door, opening it carefully and looking down the hall to Dipper’s room. A loud knock at the front door downstairs startled her, “Hello! Miss? It’s your neighbor!”

Instinct and paranoia once again dropped a veil of distrust and she slowly made her way downstairs. She stood near the door but at a safe distance, “What is it?”

“Did your power go out?” She heard someone else with him. She recognized the voice as the neighbor from a few houses down.

They sounded genuine but she was still going to play it safe, “Uh, I’m not sure, our lights were already off, why?”

He groaned, “The whole damn block’s out! Try flipping this porch light on!”

Mabel rolled her eyes and flipped the switch to the porch, “Is it on?”

“Nope! Alright, that settles that. Are you okay in there?”

“Yeah, I’m fine,” Mabel breathed a sigh of relief. It seemed it was just a power outage.

“You call if you need anything, yeah? Hopefully they’ll get the power back up and soon. Night!”

“Yeah, thanks,” Mabel waited a moment before peering through the peephole. As her neighbor walked away, she sighed and realized that there was no way she would be able to get any work done tonight. She collapsed on the couch and bundled up in a blanket.

About half an hour later the power came back on. It was nearing three in the morning and Mabel was finally starting to get a little sleepy. She turned the lights off in the kitchen and was about to make her way up the stairs when she noticed something unusual about the lighting of the streetlamps outside.

There were five lamps lined on the sidewalk that lit up the inside of their house. Mabel memorized the pattern of how the light filtered through and fell on the floor. They were usually straight lines that traveled all the way through the hallway and the kitchen.

Something was cutting a strange branch-like shape in the middle. Mabel’s heart rate increased when she saw it shift. It wasn’t related to the winds, its movements were not in sync with the gentle breeze that made the trees shudder.

Whatever it was huge enough to stretch between five streetlamps comfortably and when Mabel peered outside, she could see no sign of whatever was causing the shadow. Almost two years without dealing with the supernatural and now she was looking at the possibility of having to defend her home from whatever was lurking in the dark.

Then something even more unusual happened. One of the streetlamps began flickering rhythmically. Mabel peered closer and watched as the lamp would flicker for a few times, breaking for ten seconds between each bout of flashes.

She recognized this and she wasn’t sure whether to be relieved or terrified. “B-Bill?”

Three flickers was her answer. _Yes._

Mabel bit her lip and considered her options. Going outside, on its face, seemed like the most illogical thing to do. She hadn’t seen or heard from the demon in well over a year and she was curious about what he had been up to.

She took a deep breath and glanced at the street lamp Bill was using as his means of communication. “Why are you here?” Her breath fogged on the window and she rested her forehead against the glass. A quick glance at the shadow on her floor showed it had not moved once.

The street lamp flickered. Mabel knew the numbers by heart.

_Been. While. Wanted. See. You._

Mabel shook her head. She figured the demon would never make sense but it didn’t negate the danger he posed. Curiosity go the better of her, “Where have you been?” The street lamp didn’t flicker in response and when Mabel looked down, the shadow had moved. It was much larger now, indicating that it was much closer. Mabel’s heart skipped a beat and she looked at the street lamp, “Bill?”

The light flickered again. _Vacation._

Mabel couldn’t help the small chuckle that escaped. “I didn’t know demons took vacations.”

The light flickered sporadically. A possibility that Bill was also chuckling or just messing with her, maybe a combination of both. Mabel relaxed against windowsill, minding the lining of salt, and squinted as she looked out the window. “Where are you?”

The light flickered a few times before stopping, and then picked up again. _Here._

Mabel’s brows furrowed before she saw the shadow shrink a bit to where it appeared to have subsided. Then, an arm stretched out from the darkness and a familiar clawed hand took shape. It reached out to her and she looked back at the lamp, “You’re manipulating the shadows.” She tsk’d, “Weirdo.”

The lamp flickered for a while. _You’re. Talking. To. A. Lamp._

Mabel smiled and kept her eyes on Bill’s shadowed hand on the floor, watching as it moved gently, it’s fingers outstretched towards her. Something in her wanted to know why she couldn’t see his whole form or why he wasn’t appearing in his disguise as he usually did. Somehow, she already knew but she was too afraid to ask him.

He must have sacrificed a lot of energy to bring Dipper back. Energy he probably didn’t have.

“You can’t afford it…” Mabel covered her mouth when she realized…

The light flickered again. _Never. So. Quiet. Penny. Your. Thoughts._ The shadowed hand reached a little further.

Mabel gulped and slowly eased her way down to the floor, “Bill…” All she could think about was that moment in the woods with Dipper’s lifeless eyes staring up at her. In those moments, all she could envision was a future without her brother. A life mostly lived without her twin. When she found him alive and well, she knew she would never feel that happy again.

A few tears slipped down her cheeks and she placed her hand on the carpet of the floor near Bill’s shadowed hand, setting it down two inches from it. She could see the light flickering.

_Shooting. Star._

Mabel took a shaking breath and inched her hand a little further, “Thank you.” She felt a very slight pressure on the top of her hand and when she looked down, Bill’s shadow was covering her wrist. The pressure was so gentle it was as if he were actually there, holding her hand. She lifted her wrist a bit and relaxed.

Her eyes widened. He _was_ holding her hand. It lasted only for a split second before the lamp started flickering again and his shadow disappeared. Her hand fell to the floor and the light of the lamp stabilized.

He was gone again.

Mabel spent the rest of the night watching the lamp until the sun came up.


	8. Teddy Talk

_Seven months later_

 

“Alright, Mrs. Beverly,” Mabel tucked the elderly woman into the bed, “Is there anything else I can get for you before I leave?”

The lady smiled and stared at Mabel with a blank expression, “Can you get me my granddaughter?”

Mabel’s lips twitched, “She left this morning,” she explained for the fifth time that day. Mabel reached over and grabbed a stuffed teddy bear, wiggling it energetically, “But she brought you this.” She gently placed it on the lady’s lap, “It’s a cute little teddy, right?”

The lady took the teddy with shaking hands and smiled, “Oh, how sweet. When is she coming back?”

Mabel arranged some of the lady’s items within reach, “Tomorrow.” She put her hands on her hips and smiled, “Alright, you’re all set. I will see you tomo-“ She, and the older woman, both jumped in surprise when the teddy bear started playing music.

Mabel grabbed the bear and searched for some mechanism to make it turn off, “What the…”

There was charging port, no buttons, nor batteries. Squeezing the bear, Mabel found it to be only plush.

The lady didn’t seem to mind at all. She smiled as the music continued, “Oh! How nice!”

The music stopped and the bear’s eyes lit up as it spoke, “ _Star light, star bright, first star I see tonight…_ ”

Mabel froze and her heart started beating wildly in her chest.

“ _Shooting Star, my dear, shooting star_.”

Mabel’s eyes widened, “Oh…” Then, the teddy went quiet. Mabel turned around and smiled reassuringly at the woman, “I, uh, I think I’m going to bring this up to the front and have the receptionist make sure it’s not broken, okay? I’ll have her bring it back to you.”

The lady looked confused, “W-What are you talking about, dear? Where’s my granddaughter?”

Mabel stuttered and when the door opened to reveal the aids coming into relieve her, she let out a breath of relief, “Thank goodness! I’ll be here tomorrow, Mrs. Beverly!” She discretely tucked the bear away in her tote and walked out quickly.

Once she was at the bus stop, she fished the teddy bear out and glared, “What the hell?”

The brown, beady eyes just stared back at her lifelessly.

Mabel shook it, “Are you kidding?!” She shook it again, “Come on!”

The sound of someone clearing their throat next to her startled her and she looked over.

An older man was staring at her with concern in his eyes. Mabel gulped and awkwardly shoved the teddy back in her tote and held it close to her, facing away from the man. The ride back to her neighborhood was silent and she stayed near the front of the bus. She instinctively kept her eyes on the road.

Eventually she became tired of sitting still and she got off the bus about two miles away from her home. It wasn’t terribly hot outside and the day was sunny and bright. It was a nice day for a walk.

“That wasn’t a very nice thing to do, you know,” a familiar voice said from behind her.

Mabel turned around and her heart stopped when she saw _Bill_ , in his human form, standing on the corner she had just crossed.

She let out a quiet gasp. He looked just the way he did the last time she saw him. His hands were shoved in his pockets and he looked…healthier. Less starved than the few times she had seen him.

He had been _eating_. She wasn’t sure how she felt when the fear coiled in her gut but her heart swelled at the same time. She grabbed the strap of her tote as he walked towards her.

“Taking that old human’s teddy bear,” he chastised as he stopped merely inches in front of her, “You’re a little thief, Shooting Star.”

Mabel hadn’t _seen_ him in so long. Though his presence was always near, the shadows and small flickers of light were an indication of that, now he was physically _here_ in front of her and she didn’t know what to do. She felt a smile fighting its way across her lips.

Bill’s amber, human eyes shifted and he chuckled, “I think this might be one of my favorite moments where I’ve rendered you speechless.”

Mabel’s lips twitched into a smile, “Bill…” She reached out gently touched his arm. He _was_ here. She gripped him tightly, “You’re…you’re actually here.”

“For now,” he clarified as he removed his hand from his pocket.

Mabel noted his hand was not clawed and black like she had become used to seeing. She tensed a bit when he delicately placed his hand on her neck and traced his fingertips behind her ear. She bit her lip. Her emotions were in a flurry. She couldn’t decide if she really missed this or if she should be slightly more on guard.

Bill seemed to notice her discomfort because he removed his hand and stepped back, “I won’t hurt you.”

Mabel looked at him with determination in her eyes. Bill hurting her was surprisingly the _last_ thing on her mind. “You…you have some explaining to do.”

Bill smirked, “Do I, now?”

Mabel remained stern and nodded, “Yes. A lot of explaining.”

Bill rolled his eyes on a small, uninterested sigh, “Can’t wait.”

Mabel didn’t know what compelled her to suddenly wrap her arms around Bill’s waist but she would have paid to see his reaction.

Bill stuttered out, “W-What?” His hands hovered near her shoulders for a moment before he gently gripped them, “Shooting Star?”

Mabel pressed her cheek against Bill’s chest and held him tight. It was a quiet moment and lasted all of fifteen seconds before she pulled away. Her gaze lowered to the ground as she sheepishly tucked her hair behind her ear and adjusted her tote bag on her shoulder, “Come on,” she said after she cleared her throat, “You can tell me when we get to the house.”

**Author's Note:**

> There will be more.
> 
> Thank you for reading. Comments are very much welcome and appreciated.


End file.
